O
by SnickyPop
Summary: It wasn't always fake smiles and determination when he was gone. Sasuke's departure affected Sakura more than some would think...


**O**

Yukio knew something had upset her daughter when she didn't come home last night. And she knew something was wrong with her when she walked through the door with disheveled hair and rumpled cloths. But she knew something heart shattering had happened when her around-the-clock bubbly, pink haired little girl walked through that door and just stared her straight in the eye. She wasn't angry, and she wasn't annoyed. She wasn't…anything. Those beautiful jade eyes that she had always loved had grown dark and lifeless. Usually sparkling face was pale and covered with tear streaks, and supported by dark circles under her eyes.

Their eyes connected, and Haruno Yukio knew that her little girl…wasn't a little girl anymore. She knew she should have never let her lead the path that she had forced upon herself! She should have stayed with her and gone to a _normal_ school for _normal_ girls! But no! She took after her uncle, who was constantly spewing nonsense into the girl's head, making it full of magical dreams that were laced with a subtle hardship and hurt.

But against her better judgment, she let her become a ninja; she thought that it would blow over after a few months, maybe a year or two. But it stuck, and soon she was put into a team. Not even when the same uncle who poured all that nonsense onto her _died_ did she back down. And now seeing that it was her fault that her daughter was so shattered…so broken, it hurt her as well. She had stayed out late with her _team_ and they didn't walk her home, and something dreadful had happened.

Sakura slowly dragged her feet over to the stairs and slowly walked up them. Yukio didn't even move, she was still too shocked. What could have happened that killed her so much?

**O**

Yukio knew one thing for sure: she didn't get any sleep last night.

Sakura's screams had woken her up around midnight. She thought someone had hurt her daughter, so she rushed into the room to see what was wrong, but all she saw was Sakura, writhing in her bed, all alone. Heart shattering screams were escaping from her lips, it almost sounded like she were being tortured in her sleep. All Yukio could do was run over to her bed and hold her back in her arms, whispering all the comforting words she knew, it took hours of that before she calmed down, but only because she had screamed herself hoarse. Yukio knew that she was still screaming on the inside from the way she twitched every so often; but she didn't dare move from that spot. Did anyone know what it was like to watch your daughter torture herself and not be able to do _anything_?

**O**

Later in the morning Sakura sat on the couch staring into her tea, while Yukio looked in distress at her daughter. She hadn't said one word.

_One. Word. _

This was _not_ her Sakura. Not her sweet little Sakura that wouldn't hurt anybody without reason; that was smart and beautiful and courageous.

This was a Sakura that sat their in all her pity, and wouldn't say a word.

And Yukio had barely done anything for her, that she had been conscious for, at least. Yukio got up from where she was sitting and walked over to her pink haired daughter, she rested her hand on hers, and flinched when she pulled away.

"Sakura…" she said just barely below a whisper, "Who did this to you?"

She immediately took back the words as soon they left her mouth. Sakura's dead eyes widened as they gazed at something unseen, and they just stayed there for a moment, clutching her heart and staring at the unseen object. Yukio was sure she saw invisible tears, she must have cried all the visible ones out by now.

All the sudden her lifeless jade eyes snapped shut and she turned her head to face the other way. Yukio sighed softly and stood up. She walked out the front door onto their wooden porch and breathed in fresh air for what seemed the first time in days. The atmosphere was just too heart wrenching in there, she couldn't take it anymore.

A flash of blonde crossed her vision and she turned her head to see a girl with, indeed, blonde hair walking down the road. Her eyes lit up in thought and she called out to the girl,

"Ino-chan! Could you come here for a minute?" she called out. The girl looked over with confusion in her eyes but it cleared away as she saw the familiar face.

"What do you need, Haruno-san? Is something wrong?" she asked in all innocence.

Yukio's expression dimmed and she nodded, "Ino-chan, I know you and Sakura haven't been on the best terms for a few years now, but could you please try talking to her? She didn't come home the other night, and she just appeared the next morning looking dreadful! I have no idea what happened to her! You don't think that-that-!"

Ino had come up and put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Its okay, I'm sure that _that_ didn't happen. She is _strong_. She wouldn't giver herself up like that."

Yukio smiled to the girl, "Thank you Ino-chan. Can you at least find out what happened? She hasn't said anything since she came back, she's just been staring into space and screaming herself hoarse at night!"

Ino smiled reassuringly, "I'll talk to her, don't worry about it."

**O**

Sakura felt the weight on the couch shift to her left. She raised her head and looked over to see Ino sitting there. She didn't respond to her devious smile, she just stared at her with those same, lifeless jade eyes.

Ino shook herself and smirked at the pink haired girl, "Jeez Sakura, you've sure let yourself go! Sasuke'll take one look at you and turn the other way!"

Sakura looked like she had just been stabbed with a dagger in the heart, and if possible, she lost more life from her eyes.

Ino looked a little disturbed at this, "S-Sakura, come'n, what'd I say?"

She almost jumped when she heard Sakura's voice, it was quiet and meek, most likely from screaming herself mute last night.

"Ino…do you think I'm annoying?"

"Sakura I don't think that has any-"

"Answer the question."

Ino sighed, "Sakura, you're my friend, I don't think that you are annoying."

Sakura lowered her face so that it was shadowed over, "Lie."

"W-what? Sakura, what happened to you that made you like this?!"

Sakura looked up to her blonde friend with eyes full of despair, "Ino…I know I shouldn't love him…he's only my first…and he's gone…I can't-I can't- I CAN'T!" Sakura began to scream and shake the tears off her eyes. Ino grabbed her shoulders and held her still, "Sakura, calm down!"

"He's gone, HE'S-"

_Slap_

Sakura looked in shock to her best friend, "…I…-no?"

Ino calmed herself down and looked calmly to Sakura, "Sakura, who is _he_?"

Yukio looked closely to her daughter, she just hoped she hadn't been abused in some way…

Sakura hugged herself, "…Ino…I know this was just some stupid crush we would fight over…but I think I actually fell in love with him on the way…"

Ino looked at her friend in surprise, "Sasuke? What did Sasuke do to you?"

Lifeless jade eyes connected with startled sapphire, "Nothing Ino. I stared him straight in the face and told him I loved him. And he left."

Ino might've loved the guy, but that was just too much, she stood up angrily, "Why that no good bastard! I'm gonna go punch his light's out-" right as she was getting up to leave a small hand wrapped itself around her wrist.

"Ino, I didn't mean that he just left to go home."

"Then what…"

"He left the village…he left me and Naruto and Kakashi. He ran away from us all. I can't believe he wants to kill _him_ that much! It's not fair, what did _he_ ever do that could make S-Sasuke so mad…so full of hate…" Sakura curled into a ball and hugged her knees tightly, a tear escaped her tightly shut eyes, "Ino, _he's gone_. Sasuke, he's not apart of our lives anymore!"

Ino sat on that couch and just stared in shock at Sakura. Something finally had her speechless, "S-Sasuke left?! Why on Earth would he do that?!"

Sakura scraped her nails against her legs, her eyes narrowed dangerously into slits, "Orochimaru." Was the single word she growled out.

She saw the look of confusion in her closest friend's eyes, so she elaborated.

"Do you remember when we were in the forest of death, the day you saved me and my team from those sound ninja?" Ino nodded uncertainly, "Didn't you ever think it was strange how when Sasuke woke up he had all these huge powers? That was all the gift, or rather the curse, of a man who snuck his way into the exams and attacked us."

"Orochimaru did that? Why would he attack you three, I thought he was just after the village!?"

Sakura shook her head, "He gave Sasuke a seal that gave him powers, and brought out the worse of him. It's been giving him pain ever since, and it even controls his thoughts at times. Orochimaru marked him as his new vessel. He needs to switch bodies to stay alive; especially without arms now. Sasuke will be dead the moment he steps into that snake's lair."

Ino looked in disbelief at her pink haired friend, "Y-you're joking, right? Sasuke won't die, he's Sasuke! And besides, I bet you were just dreaming it all up! Yeah that's it! It was all just a dream Sakura, nothing happened! How about you come and help me with and help out in the flower shop!" Ino had succeeded in dragging Sakura all the way out to the road in front of her house before Sakura realized what happened and stuck herself in place using her chakra.

"Ino," she spoke in a quiet voice, "If it was all just a dream, then why did Tsunade-sama send a group of ninja after him?" Ino froze in her struggles to pull Sakura along. Her hand slowly left Sakura's and fell limply to her side.

"Ino? Are you going to be alright?" asked Sakura in a worried tone.

Ino forced out a strained laugh, "What are you talking about? I'm no crybaby like you, Sakura. I've just got something in my eye!" she exclaimed as she faced away and furiously rubbed at her eyes. "A piece of dust or something!" Ino turned back to Sakura, "You jump to conclusions too easily anyways, forehead-girl. They sent ninja after him, right? They're probably dragging him back right as we speak. I mean, Sasuke is strong and all, but he can't stand up to ANBU or even a jounin and make it out with enough energy to make it far-"

"They weren't jounin," interrupted Sakura, "And they sure as hell weren't ANBU."

"Then who…"

Sakura looked worriedly to the north, "She sent Naruto, Shikamaru, Chouji, Neji, and Kiba. Just a bunch of genin and a day old chunin."

Ino looked to the north as well, "…Sakura."

Sakura kept her eyes toward the Sound, "Hm?"

"You're lucky. Sasuke said goodbye to you."

_She had never thought of it like that…_

"He has a heart, who'd a thunk it. He cares about you and Naruto and Kakashi-sensei. And if it's Naruto who he fights in the end…" Ino looked over to Sakura and smiled warmly, "He'll be back in no time."

Sakura forced herself to smile. She knew they were just words, and they inspired hope that shouldn't have come. It would only make things hurt worse when the results came.

_He wasn't coming back anytime soon. And they all knew it very well, deep within their hearts…_

**O**

_Fin_

**O**

Yeah, I KNOW I should be updating Under His Power and The Same Old Thing, but this just came to me after listening to some songs by _The Fray_. Sorry for any typos, I think I got them all…

**I'm not sure if this is a oneshot or not, you tell me**. I have ideas for it if I continue, but I think I'll be needing a little back up on that.

So, review and tell me if this should become a chapter story. Sorry, the updates for any of my stories wont be for a week or two, family trip to Kansas. But I will be writing all the five hours there and back, so I will most likely come back with an update or two, LOOK FORWARD TO IT!

-Sn1ck3rd00dl3


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